The PS5 Pro Resurrects A Problem That PlayStation Already Solved

The PlayStation 5 Pro will be Sony's most powerful console yet, but that undeniable status as a new flagship is coming with a lot of baggage. The obvious complaint is the price, which, at $699, is an obvious no for a lot of people who might have otherwise considered the system. It's not the only problem, however, and one compromise that the PS5 Pro is making sets the generation back to an awkward side effect that was present at the launch of the PS5.

There's no way to argue that the PS5 hasn't been a success as a whole, and its potential was established from the get-go, with shortages resulting in a consistently sold-out supply for months on end. With Sony's legacy of strong exclusives during the PS4 era leading into it, the PS5 seemed like an obvious buy for many, and that momentum continued as supply problems stabilized. Even so, there have always been a few considerations to keep in mind, and one that was especially notable early on was the size of the original PS5.

To put it simply, the first version of the PS5 is both huge and uniquely unwieldy, and the PS5 Pro has essentially brought back that problem in its entirety. An official post covering the PS5 Pro notes that "," while the width sticks in line with the trimmer Slim model. In numbers, this would indicate that the PS5 Pro has a height of 15.4" and a width of 3.8", or vice versa if the console is displayed horizontally.

Although the height isn't vastly out of scale with either the PS4 Pro or the PS5 Slim, the difference is enough to make it hard to deal with, and the shape doesn't help matters any. While both Sony and Microsoft were content to release reasonably understated black boxes in the prior generation, the PS5's curvy design has never slotted as easily into the average bit of shelf space. The PS5 Slim didn't shave off as much vertical height as might be ideal, but any reduction helped, making the PS5 Pro's reversion in that regard frustrating.

The recent reveal of the PS5 Pro and its pricing have